The live-boot Ubuntu CD with our wallet generator pre-installed is available for US$18 including FREE SHIPPING to anywhere in the world.
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How does the Ubuntu LiveCD work?
This customized ("remastered") Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS LiveCD makes it possible to reboot your computer so that the Linux operating system runs directly from your optical drive. Your hard drive (along with any viruses it might contain) is essentially bypassed. An authenticated copy of the bitcoinpaperwallet.io wallet generator is pre-installed, so you can start printing wallets without ever going online.
How to boot to this DVD
On many computers, the process is as simple as rebooting the computer with the DVD in the optical drive.
If you are using a Macintosh, insert the DVD, and then reboot the computer while holding down the "option" key. After a few moments, you should be given a choice to boot to your usual OS X environment or the DVD (which may erroneously be described as "Windows".)
If you are using Windows, please visit this page which includes some tips on tweaking your BIOS. This is especially important when using Windows 8, as the UEFI setup may need to be adjusted:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootFromCD
It can take a very long time (5+ minutes) for your computer to finish booting from the DVD. Brew a cup of tea and have patience. Your screen may display some strange garbage during the process. If you see a "keyboard = human" icon, then everything is working fine.
When the boot process has completed, you will see the "Gnome" desktop environment. This is a traditional icon-based environment you control with your mouse and keyboard. A Firefox window will automatically open with instructions to configure your printer and launch the paper wallet generator.
Plug in your printer via USB. If this is a fairly common printer, Ubuntu may allow you to start printing without any further configuration. The printer settings control panel has a feature that will let you print a test page. Do not continue to the next step until you are sure that Ubuntu is able to use your printer.
Click the green "open generate-wallet.html" button in the Firefox window, and then generate and print all the paper wallets you need.
Tip: To shut down/reboot, look for a 'gear' icon in the upper-right corner. Try to eject your CD before the computer begins the reboot process. (Mac: hold down the mouse button while rebooting. PC: use the eject button.)
Ubuntu is a trademark of Canonical Limited and is used with the permission of Canonical Limited. This software is not endorsed by or affiliated with Canonical Limited or the Ubuntu project.
What if I don't have an optical drive?
Your next best option is to format a USB drive with the standard Ubuntu Live distribution, boot to it, download the wallet generator from GitHub, and verify its PGP signature. This is not recommended if you have a Macintosh, since (as far as I know) booting to a Linux thumbdrive does not work without significant messing around.
How is your Live CD more secure?
The great advantage our LiveCD is that it's a completely clean operating system, guaranteed to be free of malware/spyware (assuming that the official Ubuntu LiveCD distribution also virus-free.) The wallet generating software is pre-installed, so you don't have to download and authenticate it yourself. To run it, your computer doesn't need to have an Internet connection, or even a hard drive. And since you are running the OS off of write-once optical media, no virus or postal delivery person or other sneaky person can alter what's already on the CD!
Frequently Asked Questions
How to make your own "remastered" Ubuntu LiveCD
Here's the exact process that was used to produce the Ubuntu LiveCD offered on this website. If you are not fairly experienced with Linux, you might want to ask a friend for help. Note: even a seasoned expert should expect to spend at least an hour or two to follow these build instructions:
- Start with a completely fresh install of Ubuntu 14.04.1 so that none of the following steps may be compromised by viruses or trojans. You MUST be running the same version of Ubuntu as the ISO you intend to remaster. Treat this operating system as a "clean room" which you will use ONLY to produce your own customized LiveCD.
- Install UCK, the "Ubuntu Customization Kit". Our CD was made using version 2.4.7 from January, 2013. If a more recent version is ever released, you had better check it carefully since this would be a likely place for a trojan to hide now that these instructions have been posted. :)
- UCK will likely need a little tweaking to work with modern Ubuntu. If you get errors while making/compiling, search for the error strings and you'll find more specific help online. Modifications should consist of only one or two edits to the UCK source code.
- Download the Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS image.
- Run UCK, and specify your language and desktop preferences. When asked for an ISO, specify the file you downloaded in step 4.
- When asked if you want to customize the ISO, select yes.
- Click the option to "Run Console Application", which will open up a terminal window which is giving you (virtual) access to the contents of the ISO.
- You can speed up your ISO's boot time by removing the option to use the CD as an installer. Type:
sudo apt-get autoremove ubiquity - Now create your Desktop directory, go there, and download your bitcoin-related software
Note that you are in a virtual environment. You cannot copy files from your parent Ubuntu environment, because this terminal makes it as if you have already booted to the CD. - When you exit the "Console Application" you will be taken back to the UCK installation process. Click "Continue Building".
- An ISO for the modified version of the Ubuntu LiveCD will be built in ~/tmp/remaster-new-files.
- Burn it! Congratulations, you just customized the Ubuntu LiveCD with your favorite bitcoin software.
... or you can just buy the ready-made DVD and wait for it to arrive in the mail. :)